how much shimmer is acceptable

There are all kinds of beauty “rules” that women are taught to follow, dictating everything from where we should apply perfume to exactly how much shimmer is acceptable, depending on age. (Is there a mathematical algorithm for that?) What will happen if break one of these rules? Will there be mass chaos and rioting in the streets? Hardly. The worst-case scenario is that you don’t like the result, in which case you simply don’t do it again. But you just might discover that you love the way you look! These “rules” are ready to be broken for good.

Rule #1: Focus on Eyes Or Lips—Not Both

The traditional advice is that you should always pair a smoky eye with a nude lip, and pair a statement-making lipstick with understated eye makeup. But unless your idea of a “smoky eye” is three pounds of thick charcoal shadow (in which case you might want to take it easy in general), there’s no reason you can’t have both. Frankly, to focus only on one feature tends to make the rest of the face look a little unfinished. There’s nothing wrong with dramatic dark eyeliner and look-at-me-red lips inhabiting the same face during a night out on the town.

Rule #2: Always Match Your Lipstick to Your Nail Polish

Well-meaning grandmothers have been encouraging well-bred young ladies to coordinate their makeup this way for generations, but the matchy-matchy look isn’t just out, it’s totally over—and shows no signs of ever coming back. Unless you want to look like you just stepped out of a cotillion (or if you work on Capitol Hill), makeup colors should be complementary, not identical.

Rule #3: Never Let Your Roots Show

Here’s a news flash for the root police: no one’s hair is exactly the same color from root to end. So if you color your hair, subtle darkness near the scalp looks more natural than obsessive touch-ups—even the blondest hair tends to grow in a little dark and then lighten up. For the past few seasons, two-tone and ombré hairstyles have dominated the runways and the streets, so don’t be afraid to duck your colorist’s calls for another few weeks.

Rule #4: Don’t Tweeze Above Your Eyebrows

Yes, the bulk of the clean-up work should still be done below the brow, but there’s no reason not to pluck the random stray hairs that grow from above, too. Go easy on the above-brow area, because overzealous plucking can lead to thin, unnatural shapes, but when hairs above the brow
are long, unruly, or growing outside the natural definition of the brow, get rid of ’em.